Part "deux" of the resurrected Blake Edwards's franchise returns Steve Martin as the hapless Inspector Clouseau. Martin has grown into the role as far as physical comedy goes, and it doesn't hurt to have a robust ensemble to mask the razor-thin plot. Director Harald Zwart keeps the ninny nonsense moving quick enough to stave off the staleness.

Most of the action takes place in Paris (though the film was shot in Boston), where Clouseau and a "dream team" of detectives (Andy Garcia, Alfred Molina, and Bollywood beauty Aishwarya Rai Bachchan among them) try to nab the Tornado, a faceless thief who's lifted the Shroud of Turin, the Magna Carta, and the eponymous gem of the title.

Lily Tomlin steals many a scene as a sensitivity Nazi, and Emily Mortimer, Jean Reno, and John Cleese all throw in as Clouseau's cohort. I like Martin, but this part deux has an all too familiar stink about it.

HOLLYWOOD, RI-STYLE | July 30, 2014 The 2014 edition will premiere more than 240 films (features, shorts and documentaries) from 62 countries and 34 US states.

GLOBAL CINEMA, LOCAL FLAVOR | August 08, 2013 The 17th annual incarnation of the Rhode Island International Film Festival begins its weeklong run on August 6. The festival, which boasts more than 200 films from 65 countries, is a celebration of the cinematic arts with a campus feel and a focus on all things Rhode Island.

REVIEW: SAFE HAVEN | February 14, 2013 Somewhere along the way Nicholas Sparks went from being just a bestselling author of preachy schmaltz to a full-on franchise (he produces the movies of his books).